A novel workflow for developing 3D mitral valve-left ventricular model using 3D-Transesophageal echocardiography.

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular Imaging
• Medical Modeling
• Surgical Planning

Background:

• Mitral valve (MV) repair is crucial for treating mitral valve regurgitation.
• Accurate MV repair prediction requires analyzing the coupled behavior of the left ventricle (LV) and MV.
• Simultaneous LV and MV imaging and processing present significant challenges.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop an efficient method for converting transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) images into 3D virtual models.
• To enhance visualization and enable predictive flow modeling for presurgical planning of MV repair.
• To create anatomically accurate, unified 3D MV-LV models for detailed analysis.

Main Methods:

• Utilized 3D TEE imaging in 5 pigs.
• Processed DICOM data using Slicer for MV and LV segmentation.
• Smoothed MV, converted to a shell in MeshLab, and unified with LV in Meshmixer.
• Validated 3D models against harvested MV and LV tissue.

Main Results:

• Successfully developed unified, anatomically accurate 3D MV-LV virtual models.
• Demonstrated geometrically reasonable correlation between the 3D end-diastole model and harvested tissue.
• Quantified virtual measurements (e.g., annular circumference, leaflet dimensions) for detailed analysis.

Conclusions:

• Developed an efficient, semi-automated workflow for creating 3D MV and LV models.
• The generated 3D models facilitate hemodynamic modeling and enhanced visualization.
• This 3D protocol can improve presurgical understanding and planning for mitral valve repair.